Hi everyone I've been reading these forums for some time, while I get ready to create my own 3d arcade/action game. I was wondering what is the best way to promote your game so there is at least some interest generated by the time it appears in the app store? I assume posting around in forums and referring back to the game's website is mandatory, but what about advertising/reviews/gameplay movies etc.? What methods have been useful to other developers in the past, both before and after the game's release? And as a side question, any thoughts on Unity as a good engine for iphone? Are there any drawbacks to it? Anything particularly awesome about it? Thanks!
Best way to promote your game is by creating a great game that people want to play. It doesn't matter how many promo codes you throw around with contests and gimmicks if at the end of the day what you're offering on the App Store is a mediocre clone of existing titles. The competition on the App Store gets more and more harsh every day, people try to beat the competition by pricing lower when really what they need to do is innovate and create something better to stand out in the crowd. Do that, and your app will promote itself via word of mouth. Players recommending your game to other people is the best advertising you can get... And best of all, it's free.
There are still a ton of apps that slip through the cracks and become hidden gems. You can't just make a good game w/o some decent advertising. Some get lucky and enough people with an ability to spread the word well can carry a title but not all get discovered early enough by the right people. If you want to really get some exposure, obviously make a good game but get a publisher with some face time like Gameloft to back you.
Thanks for the replies! My game is definitely new and original, theres nothing else like it on the app store (for now) I agree that word-of-mouth is the best but its risky like Benegesserit said, good games still get lost in the deluge. I'm not too keen on a publisher either. This is a game I'm working on in my spare time so if it does flop I can always keep my day job haha! Are there any other ways for me to promote it? Or "help" spread it by word-of-mouth?
Keep the price low or offer a lite version. Most people are willing to spend .99 - 1.99 to try anything that doesn't look like a poor clone. Now would be a good time to launch an app with all the hubbub about the iphone after the 3.0 announcement as they might start selling more units now faster than usual.
Hi All, Just a player here but I can only hope "Don't Be a Fatty" is NOT issuing in a new era of hype. From all that I've heard and read about the game itself it is nothing more than a fairly mediocre attempt at Kaboom (or whatever the catching game genre goes by) with a few innovative twists. Having some big $200 giveaway contest to promote reviews and the constant banner ads here in TA just makes me feel nauseous and resolved NOT to bother with it (like being in a store with a really pushy sales person).
The developers of the good apps that slip through the cracks as hidden gems need to contact the review sites. Between big name releases I'm usually just randomly clicking around the App Store... and it's usually hard to find things that people aren't talking about. If you know of any hidden gems, you should start a thread about them.
Unity is a good 3D engine dont know much about it but I'm sure it's pretty good. Ways to get your app promoted: Giveaway promo code for reviews Give promo codes to review sites to get publicty Make a lite version of the app Post a gameplay video places. Give sneak peeks to review sites to post on there blog about. Hope this helps!
Except that many of the review sites are so swamped that they only review the games by major companies now; ie, gameloft, ngmoco, etc. There's enough volume that it's becoming hard for indi dev's to even get reviewed. Splat currently has 19/20 five star reviews in the app store, yet I can't get a single review site to even look at it as far as I can tell. The game is ever changing, and as volume increases it's going to become harder for smaller dev's to have any chance of getting known, regardless of app quality.
I found that getting reviewed doesn't really seem to help. Our game has been review by a bunch a sites all giving us amazing reviews. But we still haven't sold very many units. Maybe its because we haven't gotten on the right sites, I don't know. But it's been a bit disheartening. Lowering our price did help a bit, but not much. When we released our lite version it boosted our sales as well, but again not enough for us to quit our day jobs. I think it's just a combination of all the things that have been mentioned in this thread along with a lot of luck. Making a good App is the first step however, so make sure you get that right and you will be on the right track.
A thousand times THIS! I've reviewed eleventy brazillion (plus or minus) derivative apps and outright clones, and it gets to a point where it doesn't matter how well the game is presented, if you've played it all before almost verbatim, I'm going to score it low because it offers absolutely nothing new -- or what it does offer that's "new" is just a feeble attempt to inject some random difference just to be able to say it's different. Visuals and audio always help of course, but if you aren't going to bother trying to step outside the box at least a little -- and in ways that are at least moderately innovative or clever -- then you aren't going to do very well no matter how many promo codes or ads you throw around. This is actually something I often tell developers who want me to review their apps: If it sucks, if it's boring, if it's wholly derivative, and you don't want a bad or mediocre review, don't send me a code. You don't want a bad score, and I really don't want to review it. I've got enough better material to keep me busy and nobody wants to read yet another review of yet another match 3 game or labyrinth game or memory game or spot-the-differences game or what have you -- not unless it's so exceptional or steps outside the formula far enough that it's actually interesting. There's no proven method that works for every game because the most important factor that sells a game is the game itself. A good game only really needs advertising to get the word out. From that point, f it's good -- especially if it's great -- the word will spread itself. When it's released, hit up the review sites and pass out some codes to reviewers, then maybe pass out a few more on forums like this one to get some end user reviews going. From there, if it's well received, you just have to maintain a rapport with your customers, listen to feedback, fix problems, maybe add requested features, and you're golden.
What are some good sites to hand out promo codes. I have sent out promo codes to a few sites that I found using google. But as was mentioned with so many games it seems like the reviewer just have too many to go through. The 3 sites that did end up reviewing my game all gave it good reviews but only one of the bigger sites ever got back to me (WhatsOniPhone.com) all the other ones where smaller sites. Also, all my customer reviews have been good including a lot of people from this forums where I gave out promo codes for criticism.
Yep, the so called "romantic period" where anything could get by is over. Has been for a while. You need something worth talking about. If you can't genuinely say your product is unlike nothing else on the store, or better than the competition, then go back to the drawing board.
We hired a great PR company to help us get the word out. Promotions start soon actually. Some things I would recommend: - Get involved with review sites, by calling them and talking to the editors one on one. - Get a involved PR/Marketing company to help you ( I did this even though I have been doing internet marketing since 1994) - Interact in blogs, youtube etc. If they are talking about iphone games you should be in the conversation Ultimately by building a app/game that is good, people will talk about it. Then you need to engage those people.
A lite version of your game can really make a huge difference. Our game was released in November and sold normally only a few copies a day and maybe 10 copies if we'd been reviewed (We average 8/10 in our reviews) that day until last week when we released a lite version and the games sales have shot through the roof yet we're still not anywhere near the top 100. We're doing good for our standards though in the top 100 family apps for full and lit version, also the lite version in the top 100 of puzzle apps.
SHould the lite version be free or a minimum price ? we have thesame problem and think about a lite version. In one country (not mine ) only our game reached No 2 of all games and no 3 of all Apps, in the others the awareness is not that good, or statistic.
What's your game, Rovio? I have also seen a pretty huge spike in sales after releasing a "Lite" version. (Reminds me, I should add it to my signature.) It's only been out for a week, but before the release I was having 0 sales about every other day. Since the lite version came out (knock on wood) I haven't had a no-sale day yet. I have also heard that just updating your app can have a positive effect on sales. Especially if you show up on the "What's new" lists.
See lite versions work I had totally forgotten about you game but now that there is a lite version I will try it
